Southwest adds charge to board sooner

[DVC Sadie]

I have flown Southwest about 6 times now and some of those flights have had connections. I have NEVER seen anyone with one child under the age of 4 board with just one parent.

Just for the sake of arguement--what happens if your dh is not with you? Would you make your 7 year old board alone because he or she is over 4?

I have seen one parent board with only one child plenty of times while the grandparents/other adult boarded later. Heck, I have even seen flights where SWA didn't announce family boarding because the flight was full.

Of course if I was the only adult on a flight and I was flying with both a 4yr old and a 7 yr old I would then have all of us board together. There's a big difference between that scenario and the scenario you are contemplating, don't you think?

 

[DisNae]

I have flown Southwest about 6 times now and some of those flights have had connections. I have NEVER seen anyone with one child under the age of 4 board with just one parent. There are ALWAYS siblings, both parents and many times grandparents with them (we usually fly to Orlando) . I never knew that was the policy because it certainly was not enforced at all. It is always announced that families with children ages 4 and under can board between the A and B groups.

Just for the sake of arguement--what happens if your dh is not with you? Would you make your 7 year old board alone because he or she is over 4?

Yes, I realize they don't always enforce that policy (the one adult thing), but I know that they sometimes do as it is up to the discretion of the GA. But it would be just my luck that the GA on my flight(s) would decide to enforce the policy and I'd be panicking about DD being separated from the rest of us. We are cruising on our upcoming trip so we don't have a convenient option for a 24-hour online checkin on the return flight.

As for your last question, that is honestly something I hadn't considered, and I guess if I were faced with that scenario I would hope that SW/the GA on that flight wouldn't make my one child (who is quite obviously way under 10 years old) board separate from me and my younger child. But I guess it would be up to them to decide at that time. And purchasing EB for just her wouldn't necessarily solve the problem, because she might end up boarding before DD 3 and I even did with family boarding. I guess the best decision for me would be (if I hadn't already purchased tickets in the scenario you mention), I would choose to fly another airline with assigned seats. Or if I had already purchased SW, and I wanted to be absolutely positively sure we all 3 got to board/sit together, I'd have to purchase EB for all 3 of us.

But like I said, I'm a pretty strict rule follower and a nervous nelly/worrywart when it comes to these things, so the idea that the GA *might not* let all 3 of us board together would probably eat me up until I broke down and purchased EB.

 

[my2minnies]

Yes, I realize they don't always enforce that policy (the one adult thing), but I know that they sometimes do as it is up to the discretion of the GA. But it would be just my luck that the GA on my flight(s) would decide to enforce the policy and I'd be panicking about DD being separated from the rest of us. We are cruising on our upcoming trip so we don't have a convenient option for a 24-hour online checkin on the return flight.

As for your last question, that is honestly something I hadn't considered, and I guess if I were faced with that scenario I would hope that SW/the GA on that flight wouldn't make my one child (who is quite obviously way under 10 years old) board separate from me and my younger child. But I guess it would be up to them to decide at that time. And purchasing EB for just her wouldn't necessarily solve the problem, because she might end up boarding before DD 3 and I even did with family boarding. I guess the best decision for me would be (if I hadn't already purchased tickets in the scenario you mention), I would choose to fly another airline with assigned seats. Or if I had already purchased SW, and I wanted to be absolutely positively sure we all 3 got to board/sit together, I'd have to purchase EB for all 3 of us.

But like I said, I'm a pretty strict rule follower and a nervous nelly/worrywart when it comes to these things, so the idea that the GA *might not* let all 3 of us board together would probably eat me up until I broke down and purchased EB.

You can actually still reserve your boarding spot on the cruise ship. We did just that this past April. I made sure that I was around on the ship at the internet cafe at the 24 hr time. I too am a worry wart and wanted to have an A boarding spot for my family.

Have fun on the cruise--it is so much fun!!!

 

[my2minnies]

I have seen one parent board with only one child plenty of times while the grandparents/other adult boarded later. Heck, I have even seen flights where SWA didn't announce family boarding because the flight was full.

Of course if I was the only adult on a flight and I was flying with both a 4yr old and a 7 yr old I would then have all of us board together. There's a big difference between that scenario and the scenario you are contemplating, don't you think?

I agree it is a very different scenario--I was curious though.

I actually love SW and find them to be very efficient and easy to fly with children. I would be willing to pay $10 extra per ticket if I was guaranteed an actual seat. I am not a gambler and would have a hard time paying $60 and still not have my family sit together. To pay $10 so that my dh may board ahead of my possible A seating is worth it though. My kids are little and I would never trust anyone to sit next to them.

 

[DisNae]

You can actually still reserve your boarding spot on the cruise ship. We did just that this past April. I made sure that I was around on the ship at the internet cafe at the 24 hr time. I too am a worry wart and wanted to have an A boarding spot for my family.

Have fun on the cruise--it is so much fun!!!

That's good to know--thanks for the tip. I will definitely do that for me and my 3-year-old, as now I'm reading posts from folks that they have seen times when SW doesn't even call for family boarding because the plane is so full or there are so many families with young children on the flight. So that will give me some peace of mind on that front.

 

[maxiesmom]

I agree it is a very different scenario--I was curious though.

I actually love SW and find them to be very efficient and easy to fly with children. I would be willing to pay $10 extra per ticket if I was guaranteed an actual seat. I am not a gambler and would have a hard time paying $60 and still not have my family sit together. To pay $10 so that my dh may board ahead of my possible A seating is worth it though. My kids are little and I would never trust anyone to sit next to them.

I think you are taking a bigger gamble by sending your husband on board before you in the hope he can save seats. Do you have a plan B in case that doesn't work?

 

[Tinatoo]

They also of course have a list of who has a seat and if the child has a seat they MUST be in one before takeoff You can not hold a child who is ticketed so her plan wouldn't work.

The birth certificate is soley for SW it has nothing to do with security. You don't need ID for children for security. SW needs to see the B. Cert. before they will fly unless they have a ticket. And Yes they are extremely strict with this.

Thanks for the BC info. I have never flown SW with the kids before so I did not know that. On the other hand I have flown with DD(ticketed) on US Airways before and had her sit on my lap for takeoff with no problems. She is easily scared by loud noises and will not sit in the seat during take off. We have 3 under 3 traveling with us and 3 adults so each should be able to board with a child correct?

 

[Hannathy]

Thanks for the BC info. I have never flown SW with the kids before so I did not know that. On the other hand I have flown with DD(ticketed) on US Airways before and had her sit on my lap for takeoff with no problems. She is easily scared by loud noises and will not sit in the seat during take off. We have 3 under 3 traveling with us and 3 adults so each should be able to board with a child correct?

You were lucky! I would prepare her for having to sit in her seat because the vast majority of FA's will make her be in her seat with a seatbelt on. I'm very surprised you were allowed to hold her. I have had to put sound asleep kids in their seat for take off or landing.


The birth cert. are only needed for lap kids or if on a kids fare if on an adult fare they aren't needed. but yes SW is strict! I needed it for a 6 week old and no one could think that age was over 2.

 

[kaytieeldr]

It stinks that SW implemented the new policy

Again, it's NOT A NEW POLICY OR SYSTEM. Please excuse the shouting, but people aren't 'getting' this. Early Bird Check In is a new OPTION, aimed primarily at those passengers who either can't or don't want to be sitting at a computer exactly 24 hours before flight departure to get their boarding passes and who are willing to pay $10 per ticket for the convenience. It was developed in part because there were unrelated (to SWA) websites offering a similar service, except of course right at the 24 hour mark.

It also doesn't necessarily mean early boarding (another misconception I've seen on various threads), although that will likely depend on how many passengers on a given flight purchase the option.

 

[PatsMom]

Thanks for the BC info. I have never flown SW with the kids before so I did not know that. On the other hand I have flown with DD(ticketed) on US Airways before and had her sit on my lap for takeoff with no problems. She is easily scared by loud noises and will not sit in the seat during take off. We have 3 under 3 traveling with us and 3 adults so each should be able to board with a child correct?

As the PP said, you were very lucky that the FA allowed you to have the child sit with you. My DD was always ticketed, even as an infant and we always had to have her in her seat for takeoff and landing. She was very good with the car seat - she knew she had to stay in that. The first trip with no car seat she had a mini-fit (about 30 seconds) over staying in her seat with the seat belt on. We just told her that it was like the car not moving if she wasn't buckled - the plane couldn't go until she buckled up. Then she was OK.

I can remember reading about an incident not too long ago that a family was put off the plane because they could not get their child calmed down and in the seat and buckled. So you probably should be preparing the kids to sit in their seats.

With three under 3 and 3 adults, you should have no problem, depending on the relationship. I have heard the GA's announce that family boarding would be between A and B many, many times. Usually, even in Orlando, they have said that family boarding is limited to the child, the parents and siblings. They have specifically said this means that Grandma, Grandpa and your 6 cousins cannot board with you. But I can see them giving some leeway so each of the kids under 3 has an adult.

Not sure if any of your other kids (you said your DD was ticketed) are lap children, but as someone has already pointed out, only one lap child per row is allowed.

 

[yitbos96bb]

While I dont condone saving seats at all there is a HUGE different between saving 1 seat for a husband as opposed to 5 other seats for 4 kids and a parent. You would have 2 full sections saved instead of 1 seat. I wouldnt be surprised if someone sat down there just to spite you because you were working the system. And I'm willing to bet that w/ this new system emplimented SW will be more apt NOT to allow seat saving since that is how they are earning their money (despite how little it is) with early boarding.

My experiences are this....

There are some, but most people will just shoot dirty looks and walk on by.... people as a whole avoid confrontation with strangers. You will find some that don't of course, but most will be ticked but not confront unless there aren't other seats.

If its one person, most people are cool if you are polite or nice. If you just explain to them that your husband or wife is in a different group, they will generally not sit there unless the good seats are gone (so if you are saving an aisle and window and all that's left is middles, they aren't as willing).

 

[DisNae]

Again, it's NOT A NEW POLICY OR SYSTEM. Please excuse the shouting, but people aren't 'getting' this. Early Bird Check In is a new OPTION, aimed primarily at those passengers who either can't or don't want to be sitting at a computer exactly 24 hours before flight departure to get their boarding passes and who are willing to pay $10 per ticket for the convenience. It was developed in part because there were unrelated (to SWA) websites offering a similar service, except of course right at the 24 hour mark.

It also doesn't necessarily mean early boarding (another misconception I've seen on various threads), although that will likely depend on how many passengers on a given flight purchase the option.

Oh yes, I "get it" just fine. EXCUSE me for using the incorrect word--let me rephrase: It stinks that SW implemented this new OPTION after I had already purchased tickets.

No matter what you call it, it still means that unless you purchase EB, you are going to run a bigger risk of being separated from traveling companions when you board. So now it's not so much a "choice" for some of us who feel it is quite necessary to be next to our kids (or whomever--don't want to insinuate it is more important for me to be next to my kids than it is for someone else to be next to whomever they are traveling with), as even 24-hour checkin may not grant us the passes we need to do that if enough people purchase EB.

 

[my2minnies]

Thanks for the BC info. I have never flown SW with the kids before so I did not know that. On the other hand I have flown with DD(ticketed) on US Airways before and had her sit on my lap for takeoff with no problems. She is easily scared by loud noises and will not sit in the seat during take off. We have 3 under 3 traveling with us and 3 adults so each should be able to board with a child correct?

We actually just flew into MCO on Jetblue a few weeks ago. We flew with friends of the family who have an almost 3 yr old. He had a seat of course, but sat on his father's lap during take off. Because I read these boards I expected the FA to inform them that he needed to sit in his own seat. They did not care and walked by about a 8 times to make sure people's seat belts were on and such.

I think it just depends on the flight. I think in this instance they the boy was asleep and just looked so comfortable that they did not want to disturb him.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Oh yes, I "get it" just fine. EXCUSE me for using the incorrect word

Respectfully, while I quoted a few words from your post, that's only because it was the most recent time I'd read the misconception. While quoting your words, I intentionally did NOT ascribe that quote TO you (i.e. did not include your DIS name anywhere in my response or quote) because SO many people are calling this the same wrong thing.

 

[Embel]

I flew SW to & from MCO last year. We checked in on a blackberry from Sea World at the 24 hour mark. It wasn't working & took forever & I could hardly handle the stress of it. I so prefer an assigned seat! We travelled in a large group, and some members of the group boarded earlier than others (All were in A). We were able to save seats in between & all end up together. Nothing went to lost & found. No one was visibly upset. There were plenty of other seats. Frankly, given the number of kids in our group I would have been stunned if someone had chosen to seat themselves in the middle of us.

I think that the age for pre-boarding would be more reasonable at 6 than 4, but frankly I want to sit with my 7 & 8 yr olds, too.

I travel with my family. The more unlikely or expensive SW makes it for me to sit with them, the more business I give Jet Blue. If I were already holding a SW ticket when this was implemented I would be ticked.

 

[Mkrop]

Hey can all the expert SW people and transportation people help this poster out as well. No one else is posting about EB except me. I posted a link to the two DIS threads and the SW site. Others are just telling her to check in at T24.


http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2282555


Thanks

 

[Embel]

Again, it's NOT A NEW POLICY OR SYSTEM. Please excuse the shouting, but people aren't 'getting' this. Early Bird Check In is a new OPTION, aimed primarily at those passengers who either can't or don't want to be sitting at a computer exactly 24 hours before flight departure to get their boarding passes and who are willing to pay $10 per ticket for the convenience. It was developed in part because there were unrelated (to SWA) websites offering a similar service, except of course right at the 24 hour mark.

It also doesn't necessarily mean early boarding (another misconception I've seen on various threads), although that will likely depend on how many passengers on a given flight purchase the option.

If you want to get really technical, Southwest created a new policy which includes the option of paying for an Early Bird boarding pass as party of their boarding system.

Per the SW website it provides "better boarding position", which is generally considered to be earlier rather than later in the boarding process.

For the people who have already purchased a ticket, their odds of being able to find seating together have changed, and in a way that they can't quantify or mitigate ahead of time without spending more money. That stinks, no matter what you call it.

 

[seashoreCM]

No, I would not put myself on the end and my child on the window seat and "save" the seat in the middle. It's not right. Besides, what if that plan backfired and someone actually came and sat in that seat? Then I'd have a stranger between my DD and myself. Thus defeating the entire purpose of family boarding in order to be next to my child.

1. Why would anyone object to having two persons save one seat between them assuming there were plenty of other seats elsewhere in the plane no one was overtly trying to save?

2. Why would anyone want to sit between two persons who wanted to save the seat between them assuming there were plenty of other seats elsewhere in the plane which no one was overtly trying to save?

 

[wdwfan16]

I'm thinking people may get a little peeved in the long run. Especially for a person paying, then a family wanting you to move so they can be together. Who wants to pay to board earlier to be stuck next to some one elses kid the whole trip. I have 2 DDs and I can't imagine letting them sit by a stranger for a 3 hour flight. Families will not like this, and SW has been a family favorite.

If I paid I will not move for a family. Sorry you want all to sit together you all pay the fee.


Years ago, before our own kids, we took two of our 9 year old nephews to WDW. On our trip back we had split seats. It was then that we notice that two were in a exit row, so no kids. We sat in the back and the two boys sat in the front. No big deal. An older women sat on the aisle by them. We offer her on of our seats if she did not want to sit by the boys and she said she was fine. We never asked others to move for us. We did check on them and the women said they were saints and she liked talking to them. The boys enjoyed her too.

 

[Scot-n-Michelle]

Oh my gosh - I cannot believe the responses of some on here - first of all for those that are going to "save" seats for their family - my family is going to be the first to sit in those seats if that is what is available. You have paid for 1 to be seated EB - not your whole family. If you really want your whole family to most likely be together - spit out the $10 for each family member. Don't cheat the system. For all of you that are so upset by all of this - fly a different airline - simple as that. I do think that it was not fair to those that already purchased their tickets b/4 this was announced. I have no problem with my 8 year old sitting in a different seat - makes more carryon's for us as now I will pack a bag just for her - will I move for a family - nope - b/c most likely my family will be split up. I really do think SW needs to stop letting the whole family board with a child - one adult is plenty - now if there is a child that would be left behind they can board also. No need for the parents, grandparents and other adults to be boarding with the 1 child under 4. Looks like our next flight will be quite interesting!!